Saint-Félicien, Quebec


Saint-Félicien is a city in the Canadian province of Quebec. The town is located within the Le Domaine-du-Roy Regional County Municipality in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. Its population as of 2006 is 10,477.

Geography

The municipality is located on the western shores of Lac Saint-Jean north of Roberval, near the mouth of the Ashuapmushuan River. It is accessible from Chibougamau and northern Quebec via Quebec Route 167 and from locations around the lake and elsewhere across central and southern Quebec via Quebec Route 169.

History

The town was founded in 1864 when the first settlers from Charlevoix and Chicoutimi arrived. It became a municipality in 1882 and the parish was established in 1884 before becoming a city in 1976 after a merger. Agriculture and saw wood were the predominant economic activities across the region in addition to hunting, fishing and dairy. The railroad started to serve the area in 1917. Wood pulp became a major contributor in the local economy starting in the 1970s.
In 1996, the municipality of Saint-Methode was merged with Saint-Felicien as part of a municipal re-organization in the area.

Demographics

Population trend:
Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 4,389
Mother tongue:
The main attraction of the municipality is the wildlife zoo founded in 1960. The attraction contains about 80 different species including the polar bear, Arctic fox, Canada goose, snowy owl, Canada lynx, American black bear, grizzly bear, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, American bison and the black-tailed prairie dog. Until 1994, the zoo contained various exotic animals but today it contains almost exclusively species native to the boreal climate. In the last years, the zoo acquired animal species living in boreal climate from all around the world, such as: Siberian tiger, Japanese macaque, red-crowned crane and the Bactrian camel.